Commentary: Government is unnecessarily harsh to troops
Orval Strong-Special to the DN
Posted: 11/24/2008 08:22:34 AM PST
Click photo to enlarge«1»Unlike one of this paper's columnists who said,. "Were voters who chose Obama in spite of their misgivings, really putting the 'color of his skin' above 'the content of his character?" I don't believe they were. And I doubt Colin Powell or anyone else could have done any better against him than McCain did.
Obama brought something to the election process not seen in many a year. Its called charisma, it wasn't how he looked, it was what he said. Instead of offering more blood, sweat and tears, he gave us a vision of a brighter future. He gave us a reason to hope. If half he promised comes to fruition I'd be happy.
If Gerry Wolfe wants to discuss stolen elections, lets look at the one in 2000.
First of all, Clarence Thomas is a Republican. Secondly, during the time when the Supreme Court was deciding the case of Bush v. Gore, Virginia L. Thomas (the wife of Justice Thomas) worked for the heritage Foundation. This Foundation was gathering resumes for appointments in the Bush administration. Thirdly He was appointed to the high court by George Herbert Walker Bush.
Now all this is just circumstantial but it reeks of conflict of interest.
Here is one more way our government is unnecessarily harsh to our troops. Many returning disabled veterans are being given honorable discharges instead of medical under honorable discharges. You see if they got medical discharges they'd be eligible for treatment in military hospitals and clinics at Department Of Defense's
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expense. DOD banned the DAV ( Disabled American Veterans) from Walter Reed because the DAV counselors were advising the new vets to insist on the medical discharge. The Pentagon, taking Under Secretary of Defense David S.C. Chu's advise, has narrowed the definition of combat-related. This was so more soldiers would have to repay their military disability severance pay before they could receive disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
We can give billions, even trillions to the bankers without blinking an eye but taking care of those who risked their lives for us is a different matter. You should check this site out, its about our troops being sent back into combat after receiving disabling injuries, it's www.thinkprogress.org/2007/03/15/congress-injured-veterans/?sortby=toprated. Ribbons are pretty and all, but if your serious about "supporting the troops" you'll contact our two senators and tell them you want this government to stop screwing our soldiers.
Here are a few signs that show whether or not a war is bogus. I got it from The Veteran, which is a paper put out by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War.
"Not enough volunteers, no draft to staff it, no taxes assessed to pay for it, no tangible support from the public or a demand on it, those that incite don't fight, the justification for war is poor or keeps changing, war profiteering/fraud becomes rampant, amputees allowed on active duty (if wounded while on active duty), military actions that create more enemies than they kill, neutralize or convert and war waging expenditures and activities that neither increase national safety nor advance national interests while decreasing the nation's quality of life." Yes, my sources may be a bit bias, but how many of this administration's excuses for this war in Iraq have proven valid?
The most horrifying aspect of this war in Iraq is the grotesquely deformed babies it has caused Iraqi women to bare. Babies are born without much of a face, some without eyes, many with extreme hydrocephalus. You can get a better understanding of the misery we've subjected these women to by going to at http://www.aztlan.net/du_deformed_iraqi-babies.htm .
Dr. Sieqwart Horst Gunther has written a book called, Uranium Projectiles - Severely Maimed Soldiers, Deformed Babies, Dying Children. Of course we're not just talking about Iraqi babies either.
This thing in Iraq is not a war to liberate a people, it is an egregious assault against humanity.
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Orval Strong, of Gerber, is a 100-percent disabled combat veteran from the Vietnam War era. He can be reached at strongorv@theskybeam.com.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Commentary: Government is unnecessarily harsh to troops
